Joining the PL Forum can involve up to three steps. Note that you MUST join milSuite in order to access the PL Forum

Welcome to your professional forum. PL connects
leaders in the experience to leaders with the experience, and
enables future platoon leaders to prepare to lead more effectively.
By joining PL, you are choosing to participate in a voluntary
community of professionals who love leading Soldiers and who
are committed to building and leading combat-effective platoons!

We just developed a "Hip pocket" digital LPD to support leader development programs at the company level. The concept is to provide a ready to go, mobile friendly LPD that can be executed anywhere providing the user has a smartphone or tablet, and has wifi access or a data plan.
We provide content for discussion that includes a short video, related article and some recommended questions for discussion. This is designed for mobile platforms, though it can be used on a regular computer.
The first topic is “Resiliency”.

If you are interested in trying it out, shoot me a note at jonathan.silk@us.army.mil and I will send you the link.

The documents and conversations in this space are almost entirely
by and for us. PlatoonLeader is more than just a resource for
platoon leaders; its value comes from platoon leaders connecting
with each other and sharing their experiences and hard-earned
knowledge. We invite each of you to participate as your time
and experiences allow.

Professionalism is our watchword. We speak candidly, but always
with respect for each other and our commission. We tackle our
leadership challenges with a positive voice, focused solely
on building and leading combat-ready teams. We welcome multiple,
diverse perspectives on how we can achieve this common purpose.
We seek to bring to bear the knowledge, experiences, and character
of each experienced platoon leader to serve all current and
future generations of platoon leaders.

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In order to join the Platoon Leader Forum, you must be a registered user of
milSuite. If you are already a member of milSuite, click the JOIN PL button.
If you are not registered on milSuite, register by clicking the REGISTER ON
MILSUITE button, complete the registration process, then come back here
and press the JOIN PL button.

Platoon Leader Products

There are many products within PL. This is not a complete listing but it should give you a good idea of what is contained with the PL Forum.

Priority Conversations (PL Roundtables)

Monthly SigActs Newsletters

Featured PL Interviews

NCOER Smartbook

Officer Record Brief (ORB) OPD

Platoon Leader Topics

There are many Topics (areas of discussion) within PL. Each of them is
focused on a specific area.

Below is a list of the topics within PL. This is not a complete listing
but should give you a good idea of what is contained with the PL Forum.

Additional Duties

Branch-Specific: All Branches have their own area

Career Progression

Fitness

Leadership

Training

Warfighting

XO's Desk

Leader Challenge

Leader Challenges are video-based vignettes focused on the most challenging experiences that junior officers are facing.

There are three steps to a Leader Challenge

What would you do? What are your considerations? -- Watch the video clip and answer those two questions...in no more than 500 characters.

Compare your response with others: Read the responses, vote them helpful and/or comment on the responses from other members.

Rest of the Story: Watch the "Rest of the Story" video clip in which the protagonist describes what actually happened. You can also access additional resources such as related videos, articles, doctrine, etc.

NOTE: You MUST be a member of the PL or CC Forum in order to access the Leader Challenge Forum

A Leadercast is a 3-5 minute video interview with a company-level leader who shares their
story which is based on their leadership experiences in various situations in garrison,
training centers, or in combat in Iraq and
Afghanistan.

There are currently more than 1500 Leadercasts that will help set you off on a learning path as you watch an Army
Officer sharing their experiences. Some of the searchable topics include:

Building Relationships

Combat Operations

COIN

Decision Making

Emotions in Combat

Exception Platoon Leaders

Leader Development

Leading in Combat

Logistics

Losing a Soldier

NOTE: You MUST be a member of the PL or CC Forum in order to access the Leadercast Forum

Welcome OBC Students, OCS Candidates, ROTC and West Point Cadets
This Forum is focused on you.

If you are getting ready to head off to BOLC, you definitely want to check this place out. Here are some of the resources you can find in the BOLC to Unit area:

Advice about BOLC

Ranger School lessons learned

First year in the Army expectations

Branch specific information

Read2Lead Forum

THE reading list for company-level leaders. Read2Lead is member driven and is focused on books that have actually made a difference for us during our time as platoon leaders and/or company commanders. There are currently over 95 books recommended by members.

VOTE on the books that have actually made a difference for you personally.

COMMENT and share a couple sentences specifically about how the book made a difference for you.

RECOMMEND a book (if not yet on the list) that made a difference for you as a PLT LDR or CO CDR.

NOTE: You MUST be a member of the PL or CC Forum in order to access the Read2Lead Forum

From the Blog

Leader Challenge / PME2

The leader challenge project exists to give future platoon leaders
the experience of thinking through and reflecting on the cutting-edge,
current experiences of actual platoon leaders. It includes an interactive,
online experience showcasing the most developmental experiences
platoon leaders are having in combat.

Cadet Feedback

This experience was very valuable because it has validated
what I have learned throughout my career at West Point and has given
me more confidence in my decision-making ability. I feel I know
what I need to do now to become a good platoon leader.

I truly think that these classes have been as valuable, if
not more, than any other experience I've had at West Point.

This was great because it was relevant and applicable OPD finally.
This was the first time in a PME session where I was actually treated
like an officer and incorporated into the lesson/had some input
into where the discussion went. I came out of these meetings genuinely
thinking about what I'd have done long after I left.

This was the most real-life developmental experience I have
had so far at USMA. No other leadership course or PME class has
been as clearly applicable to me and my future as the leader-challenge
series. I can honestly say that I feel myself better prepared to
enter the Army.

The Platoon Leader online professional forum is the place where past, present, and future platoon leaders voluntarily come together to improve the practice of platoon-level leadership in the Army.

of Army officers (current and past PLs) has the privilege of doing the behind-the-scenes work that makes the forum possible, but it’s EVERY MEMBER’S participation and contributions that make the forum valuable.

Founded in 2001, the forum has gone through many software and server changes (platoonleader.org; platoonleader.army.mil on php, then on COTS, then on MilSpace, now on milSuite), but its vision, values, and operating principles have remained unchanged.

Earlier this year, your support team launched a non-CAC version of the PL forum (https://platoonleader.net), so we all can connect with each other even when we’re not at CAC-enabled devices. We invite all members to join both versions (.army.mil and .net)

If you’re an XO or CO, we invite you to join our sister forum, the Company Command forum, at http://cc.army.mil/
See you in the forum!